regulated rural telecom services

English translation: "rural" = rural areas, i.e. the more remote parts of, in this case,

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08:46 Jan 14, 2004

English to English translations [PRO]Bus/Financial

English term or phrase:regulated rural telecom services

In my text, "regulated rural telecoms" are contrasted with "the Baby Bells". What does "regulated rural" mean in this context?

"regulated" in the sense of subject to government control and not a market totally open to competition, doubtless because these markets are not likely to be very lucrative or cost-effective and the state will wish to cap prices. If operators were to seek to cover their full costs, the price of the service would be too great for the potential users.
The idea is to bring telecom services to EVERYBODY, even if they live away from the towns

"regulated" in the sense of subject to government control and not a market totally open to competition, doubtless because these markets are not likely to be very lucrative or cost-effective and the state will wish to cap prices. If operators were to seek to cover their full costs, the price of the service would be too great for the potential users.
The idea is to bring telecom services to EVERYBODY, even if they live away from the towns

nyamuk: Because they mention Baby Bells I suspect they are talking about the US exclusively. US rural markets are open, but they aren't profitable so the carriers rely on subsidies from the US Federal tax that all consumers pay on their phone bills.

Explanation:I'm just guessing but I think these are U.S. phone service providers that exist for the single purpose and little more of providing government mandated 911 and Universal Life Line services.

The primary regulated services are ULL and 911, there are others mentioned on the link below, however ULL and 911 are the most important to rural areas because carriers would not provide service in these areas unless they were madated to do so, and not without a subsidy paid by all consumers.

\"Universal Service Fund (USF) (Also called the Universal Connectivity Fee) - Because telephones provide a vital link to emergency services, to government services and to surrounding communities, it has been our nation’s policy to promote telephone service to all households since this service began in the 1930s. The USF helps to make phone service affordable and available to all Americans, including consumers with low incomes, those living in areas where the costs of providing telephone service is high, schools and libraries and rural health care providers. Congress has mandated that all telephone companies providing interstate service must contribute to the USF. Although not required to do so by the government, many carriers choose to pass their contribution costs on to their customers in the form of a line item, often called the \"Federal Universal Service Fee\" or \"Universal Connectivity Fee.\"